Intraluminal, intracavity, intravascular, and intracardiac treatments and diagnosis of medical conditions utilizing minimally invasive procedures are effective tools in many areas of medical practice. These procedures are typically performed using imaging and treatment catheters that are inserted percutaneously into the body and into an accessible vessel of the vascular system at a site remote from the vessel or organ to be diagnosed and/or treated, such as the femoral artery. The catheter is then advanced through the vessels of the vascular system to the region of the body to be treated. The catheter may be equipped with an imaging device, typically an ultrasound imaging device, which is used to locate and diagnose a diseased portion of the body, such as a stenosed region of an artery. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,368,035, issued to Hamm et al., the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, describes a catheter having an intravascular ultrasound imaging transducer.
Further, the catheter may also be equipped with a sensor adapted to communicate with a medical positioning system. For example, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/401,901, entitled “An Improved Imaging Transducer Assembly,” filed on Mar. 28, 2003, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, describes a catheter having a sensor adapted to communicated with a medical positioning system coupled with an imaging transducer, forming a transducer/sensor assembly.
The transducer/sensor assembly is generally a rigid structure; however, the vessels through which the assembly is typically advanced are often tortuous, which create tight radii within the catheter. Thus, it is desirable to have the rigid portions, such as the transducer/sensor assembly, of the catheter be relatively small in length.
Accordingly, an alternative transducer/sensor assembly may be desirable.